03/06/2012

Thesis Chapter 1 On Improving the Effectiveness of Occupational Health and Safety Education Program in Australian Universities

Chapter 1

Improving the Effectiveness of
Occupational Health and Safety Education Program in Australian Universities

Introduction

Globally, technological, economic and
intellectual changes of the past quarter of a century have resonated in
higher education. The proliferation of geographic
information system in health, online or distance learning in college and
even in the Masteral level became an integral part of health education.
Moreover, there has been an escalation of knowledge in various fields,
incremental
developments in the technologies that produce and disseminate knowledge, and
shifts in epistemology that have had important influences intellectually
(Manderson, 2002). The development of technology for instance had challenged the
traditional manner of delivering services (i.e. patients having to go the
hospitals) to that of a pro-active
health delivery (services rendered at home and at work).

The training that we provide in universities today is
challenged by these developments, and by the concomitant and consequent changes
in the demand for particular academic and vocational skills. This in turn has
had profound influence on how we understand higher education, and the
relationship between its
provision, its competence, its presenters, its
consumers, and their future employers.

Historically, health training has had little investment (Manderson, 2002); it
has been an area vulnerable to public scrutiny in the face of changing demands
of the field, changing definitions of its content, and changes in budgetary and
other resource support, and the ability to attract students. The effect of this
has been the difficulty of public health professionals to build up a critical
mass, including those able to provide leadership from within the universities
(Manderson, 2002).

At the worker level,
occupational health and safety (OHS) education programs aim to instruct
workers in recognizing
hazards in the workplace, and using appropriate methods to prevent the
occurrence of these incidents and to protect themselves from such harms. Cohen
and Colligan (1998) cited the different levels of OHS education programs
available, which included fundamental, recognition, problem-solving, and
empowerment programs.

Fundamental
programs involve instruction in prevention of work-related injury and
illness through proper use and maintenance of tools, equipment, materials;
knowledge of emergency procedures; personal hygiene measures; needs for medical
monitoring; and use of personal protective equipment for non-routine operations
or as an interim safeguard until
engineering controls can be implemented.

The next level, the recognition programs, include
instruction emphasizing awareness of workplace hazards and risks; knowledge of
methods of hazard elimination or control; under-standing right-to-know laws and
ways for collecting information on workplace hazards; recognizing symptoms of
toxic exposures; and observing and reporting hazards or potential hazards to
appropriate bodies.

Problem-solving programs, on the other hand,
aim at giving workers the information and skills enabling them to participate in
hazard recognition and control activities. These programs also help
identify/solve problems through teamwork, to use union and management means, and
to exercise rights to have outside agencies investigate workplace hazards when
warranted. In the decade, the risk management program had been the dominant risk
management approach in Australia.

Moreover, empowerment programs provide instruction to build and broaden worker
skills in hazard recognition and problem-solving skills much like that noted
above. Emphasis, however, is on worker activism with the goal of ensuring their
rights to an illness-and injury-free workplace (Wallerstein & Baker, 1994).
Hence, the program aims at enabling workers to effect necessary control measures
through educating co-workers and supervisors, and through use of committee
processes or in health/safety contract negotiations. This approach is in accord
with the current “Total Quality Management” and ISO 9000 Quality Management
philosophy, having rank-and-file workers along with their supervisors share
greater roles in and be more accountable for addressing workplace hazard control
needs.

This
diversity creates problems for training, where there are expectations of a
`common product' as is generally true for the degree of PhD. Departments that
deliver vocational courses head off this dilemma by ensuring professional
accreditation of their courses; alternatively, academic training may be
structured as a prelude to professional accreditation, with the latter provided
through a system of supervised practice and apprenticeship (as is the case with
internships in medicine) (Manderson, 2002).

In 2002, the Australian
Workplace Relations Ministers’ Council crafted
the Strategy that sought the “commitment of all
Australian governments, as well as the Australian Chamber of Commerce and
Industry and the Australian Council of Trade Unions, to work cooperatively on
national priorities for improving occupational health and safety (OHS) and to
achieve minimum national targets for reducing the incidence of workplace deaths
and injuries (Wallerstein and Baker, 1994).” The strategy drafted became the
basis for action in the 2003 general plan of action in OHS.

Moreover, the
council established a set of national priority action plans for 2002-2005. Their
2003 campaign aims to consolidate the
objectives of the 2002 campaign and encourages employers and occupational safety
and health decision makers to consult with employees. The campaign will focus on
its priority areas namely: chemicals and harmful
substances, electricity, manual handling – lifting, new and young workers, slips
and trips, and working at heights.

However,
success of the plan implementation would greatly rely on the working
population’s level of understanding of the principles and approaches in OHS
(Cowley and Murray, 2002). Moreover, to ensure the sustainability of this
strategy, there has to be a sound and effective education system that would
supply the workplace with informed and more capable individuals that would
effectively carry out this mandate. Engineers, one professional group, are
specifically targeted for these OHS educational enrichment activities due to
their significant role in the design and creation of workspaces (the different
levels of training needs is shown in Table 1). The different levels of education
and competency training apply to different levels of OHS needs in the workplace.
A manager for instance could not be trained in the same coursework as that of a
worker because their positions demand a different type of training. For safety
professionals, researchers and safety practitioners coming from mother
disciplines, a theoretical training is needed. Furthermore, in the Masteral and
Doctorate level, the theoretical training provided in their undergraduate course
shall be applied in the workplace. In the Masteral level, the students are
expected to provide programs and strategies that can be used in the workplace.
The Doctorate level would require a more demanding project such as the OHS
program of the organization and the firm and the development of frameworks that
could be implemented in OHS. Thus, improving the quality and effectiveness of
OHS education in Australia will serve as key instrument in the attainment of
this objective.

Table 1. Different Levels of
Training in OHS

Type of Profession

Type of Training

Training Provisions

Workers

Competency Training

Training Organizations,
Technical and further education

Managers

Supervisor Training

Management Training
Organizations

Technicians/ Junior
Safety Professionals

Bachelors Degree
Certificate

Technical and Further
Education

College and Universities

Safety Professionals from
other disciplines

Postgraduate Coursework
Training

College, Universities

Professional Associations
(accredited)

Researchers

Research

Universities

The new model of
occupational health practice integrates various occupational health professions,
and possibly other specialists involved in preventive activities, into
multidisciplinary preventive services capable of detecting and controlling
occupational, non-occupational and environmental health risks. Occupational
medicine is one of the fundamental disciplines in a multidisciplinary
occupational health team. The training
and core competencies of occupational physicians have evolved in Australia to
respond adequately to continuous changes in working life and to meet the needs
of society (MacDonald, Baranski and Wilford, 2000).

The functions of
occupational health physicians is particularly important because in some
countries general practitioners or other specialists who lack training
in the work environment­ health relationship carry out some functions of
occupational health physicians (e.g. periodic health, fitness
assessment/examinations and rudimentary health examination); employers and
insurance companies to draw up job descriptions and define tasks for
occupational physicians employed by them; occupational health services (where
most occupational physicians work) (MacDonald, Baranski and Wilford, 2000).

Doctoral training, however, has been
constructed as a process by which an individual acquires specialist knowledge of
his or her discipline and the methods and skills to conceptualize, design and
implement research projects, and analyze and report the results, conventionally
via apprenticeship with a `master' professional (Manderson, 2002). This goal
provides the graduate with the necessary minimal skills (today, if not in the
past) for academic appointment, but does not necessarily provide skills that
transfer into other avenues of employment. Issues of accreditation and
competency are not relevant in a technical sense; a PhD is not (usually) a
qualification for `practice' other than, perhaps, the practice of independent
research, although one could argue that a doctorate provides evidence of
conceptual and analytic ability that might be appropriate for a variety of
management and policy positions (Manderson, 2002).

Competency and the acquisition of technical
skills are relevant, however, for master's students, whose choice of employment
post-training is more likely to be applied than theoretical--that is, in
government, the not-for-profit or the private sector rather than in academia
(Manderson, 2002). Students and employers look to universities to provide them
with appropriate workplace skills at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
The issue of core competency has exercised public health professionals for some
years (Manderson, 2002). Partly in response to this, Master of Public Health
training in all states in Australia provides core training (in Epidemiology and
Biostatistics, Social Sciences, Health Management) as well as electives and
specialization.

Kerr White conducted a review of public health
training in Australia in 1986. Following this, the decision was taken to tie
public health and Medicine by basing the former in faculties where doctors were
trained, and to tie public health funding to Department of Health priorities. As
a result, the first (and at the time, the only) school of public health was
closed, (Manderson, 2002) and new public health institutions and training
programs were established within medical schools with direct funding from the
Department of Health (now Health and Aged Care) rather than the Department of
Education (i.e. DETYA) (Manderson, 2002).

This is despite the increase in universities
nationally which do not provide medical training, which does not receive
targeted public health funds to teach a Master of Public Health, and which
compete with those who do by offering full-fee coursework degrees. This is also
so, despite criticisms of medical hegemony in public health, despite pressure
from universities wishing to access funds from the health as well as education
budget, and despite appeals against this policy from representative bodies such
as the Public Health Association of Australia. (Manderson, 2002)

The location of public health in medical
schools has played a major role in institutions defining their pedagogical
approaches and identifying the objectives of the training that they offer. The
Australian Centre for International and Tropical Health and Nutrition (ACITHN,
University of Queensland), for instance, offers at a master's level training
that is emphatically pragmatic, designed to train people working at the level of
a district manager of health (Manderson, 2002). In contrast, the aim for
doctoral training is common to all departments at the university, and other
universities share such global aims and objectives at this level (Manderson,
2002). (These include a high level of knowledge of the disciplinary area,
mastery of a body of theory and methodology, and the ability to conceptualize,
conduct and report on original research.) Coursework training, in sum, has a
pragmatic, employment-related objective, and its provision is
market-oriented--different courses are developed with different target
populations in mind. Research training, on the other hand, is intended to
establish a scholar's theoretical and methodological competence within a given
discipline, through his or her original contribution to its knowledge base
(Manderson, 2002).

In the past, Masters training provided a
bridging ground for many to undertake doctoral training, and the demand for
coursework degrees was limited (Manderson, 2002). Those students interested in
higher degrees proceeded to a PhD program, where their expectation after
graduation was to gain employment in a university, offer a variety of courses
within the discipline or provide adjunct instruction in other teaching programs,
secure research grants, and publish. Since the 1970s, as indicated in
Marginson's article, higher degree training in Australia in all fields has
increased exponentially, and postgraduate training now serves multiple purposes
(Manderson, 2002). It also dominates postgraduate education. For example,
postgraduate coursework programs at University of New South Wales (UNSW)
outweigh research student enrolment by 3 to 1. However, market forces are
presently addressing this particular problem.

The first issue raised by Centers for
Disease Control
list of training shortcomings, presented above, relates to the articulation of
higher education and the workplace. A dilemma most Universities face concerns
postgraduate training should increase its orientation to the potential
employment of its students or promote scholarship for its own sake. The
development of professional doctorates, which may include practicum and
internships as well as primary and secondary research, illustrates the degree to
which this has already occurred in Australia and elsewhere. Quality, scope and
content are issues here. There is little commonality among universities. Again,
this is a topic that requires continuing debate, particularly given that
questions of curriculum quality assurance, competence and core content are seen
often as an agenda of the richest, most established universities.

The occupational physician is
part of an integrated multidisciplinary occupational health and
safety service, or has access to multidisciplinary
colleagues in such a way as to enable the giving of appropriate advice in
related fields of health and safety to smaller
enterprises where he/she may be called upon to work (MacDonald, Baranski
and Wilford, 2000). The occupational physician
for further advice and opinions may call on other medical colleagues, for
example specialists in surgical and medical fields.

The responsibilities of the engineers in OHS balances the
capacity covered by occupational physicians who focus only on the medical model,
that is, on injury minimization and treatment. Thus, engineers takes on the more
preventive approach that seeks to identify, assess and control workplace risks
so that injuries don’t occur. Thus, a multidisciplinary model would provide a
holistic view of OHS training and education and its impact on the workplace.

The role of engineers on OHS had been evolving from merely
designing to that of being a researcher at the same time (Rechnitzer, 2001). The
primary objective of integrating the two lies in accelerating and improving the
safety design measures in the workplace. The key role design plays in OHS can be
identified as follows: forklift safety, heavy vehicle safety, and manual
handling and construction industry safety. Furthermore, good design requires
good information, experience and knowledge.

However, there were also
shortcomings from OHS researches. Research institutes and universities also need
to expand their training
of occupational physicians and other occupational health specialists and
research into workplace health. Occupational medicine is one of the major
disciplines of occupational health (MacDonald, Baranski and Wilford, 2000).
While occupational medicine is a specialty of physicians, occupational health
covers a broader spectrum of different health protective and promotional
activities. Each of these specialists will have undergone
professionaltraining
and acquired experience in a variety of industrial and service fields to achieve
wide-ranging competencies. The physician's managerial, analytical, scientific
and clinical skills will assist in g the team towards the most fruitful
interaction and deployment of its different roles so as to provide enterprise
management with a powerful occupational health instrument (MacDonald, Baranski
and Wilford, 2000).

Occupational Health Courses have been prevalent in developed
countries such that universities have designed courses in order to meet the need
for occupational health practitioners. However, on relatively less developed
countries such as Malaysia and Singapore, the offering of occupational health
courses has yet to be fully integrated in universities.

However, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, and Malaysia are at a crucial turning
point in their development (Altbach, 1989).
They have achieved an impressive level of economic growth in the past several
decades. They have also built up impressive academic infrastructures that are
poised to engage in educational research. These and other questions may seem
daunting, but they are an indication that science in general, and R&D in
particular, in these four important countries are at a point of take off
(Altbach, 1989). In spite of these
differentials, the great progress made in health status by the vast majority of
developing countries over the last 40 or 50 years may not be so widely
recognized (Altbach, 1989). Continuing
gaps in health between the industrialized and developing countries should not
obscure our recognition of the accomplishments in both types of setting. The
struggles of health workers and countless others, often against great odds, have
not been in vain (Altbach, 1989).

Thus, Australia universities have
been cooperative in helping countries such as Malaysia and Singapore in
developing their occupational health curricula. The Occupational Safety and
Health Network of Western Australia (OSHNet) met through the years, to
facilitate the export of occupational safety and health services and products of
OSHNet members through a process of information dissemination, marketing and
co-ordination (Department of Consumer and Employment Protection, 2003).

Strong relationships with
Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand were maintained through occupational safety and
health missions conducted by the Minister for Labour Relations and the WorkSafe
Western Australia Commissioner (Department of Consumer and Employment
Protection, 2003). A mission to Thailand in June 1996 culminated in the signing
of a Memorandum of Understanding with Thailand's Mahidol University, principally
to assist with education and training in occupational safety and health and
labor studies and the development of distance learning materials delivered via
the Internet (Department of Consumer and Employment Protection, 2003). Study
programs delivered in South-East Asia included construction safety training and
train-the-trainer courses for Malaysian Safety and Health Officers presented at
the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Malaysia
(Department of Consumer and Employment Protection, 2003). WorkSafe Western
Australia also assisted Curtin University achieve a project grant from AusAid to
deliver occupational safety and health training to people from industry,
government and universities in Thailand (Department of Consumer and Employment
Protection, 2003).

The table below shows a comparative analysis on the developments
of Australia, Malaysia and Singapore in terms of their Health Developments. The
Education and Training Part indicates that from the environmental health courses
being developed, the occupational health and safety of the three countries are
being developed. Particularly, courses in the Post-graduate level are being
designed in Australia. Malaysia and Singapore are still in the process of
reviewing the institution of occupational health courses including in the
Post-graduate level. For instance for Malaysia and Singapore, the inclusion of
sanitation and body hygiene courses indicates that they are integrating the
fundamentals of public health. Sanitation and body hygiene indicates the earlier
stage of public health development.

However,the table implies that there are
significant changes that the government and the universities had imposed in
order to improve and develop their occupational health and safety. Education and
training is the key and the formulation of these changes will be a means of
promoting and further enhancing the services that they can offer on their
workers’ safety.

COUNTRY PROFILE:
MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS IN HEALTH

FROM 1996 TO 2001
IN AUSTRALIA, MALAYSIA and SINGAPORE (Excerpt from the World Health Organization Report. 2002)

The purpose of this
investigation is to look into the current status of OHS education in Australia
to contribute to the improvement of the quality and
effectiveness of its delivery. Specifically, this study aims to:

1.Determine the status of
occupational health and safety in the tertiary education in Australia;

2. Investigate the factors that
contribute to the status of these programs;

3.Compare the Australian
occupational health and safety education programs to that of Malaysia and
Singapore; and

4.Recommend measures on improving
the effectiveness of Australian occupational health and safety education system.

Hypothesis

This study will test the following null
hypothesis:

1.There is a significant
correlation between the level of educational training and the competence of
Occupational Health Workers in Australia

2.Effectiveness of Occupational
Health Programs in Australian Universities is positively affected by factors
such as: the curriculum of occupational health programs, the quality of teachers
and faculty members, governmental support and funding, and the population of
enrolled occupational health students in the undergraduate, masters and the
doctorate level.

Nature and Significance

This study will largely be
descriptive in nature to provide a clear picture of the status of OHS education
programs in Australia. This study, aside from aiming to contribute new insights
to the prevailing knowledge on the status of OHS education programs in
Australia, will also endeavor to recommend mechanisms that will assist the
improvement of the delivery of OHS education programs the country.

Scope and Limitation

This study will investigate the effectiveness
of the Australian Universities in providing competent and effective education
and training on occupational health students and workers. Moreover the factors
that affects this effectiveness such as the curriculum of occupational health
programs, the quality of teachers and faculty members, governmental support and
funding, and the population of enrolled occupational health students in the
undergraduate, masters and the doctorate level, will be investigated in lieu
with the assumption that the ability to enforce these factors competently will
lead to a skilled occupational health practitioners.